Google Ads is well-established as one of the most high-powered ad systems. We all know that it can drive big results in major ways that lead to new clients and skyrocketing revenue. We’ve seen it happen through our agency time and time again, month-over-month and year-over-year.

Despite that, it’s clear that some businesses believe that Google Ads don’t really work. Or, perhaps more accurately, they believe that Google Ads won’t work for them.

So do Google Ads really work? And if so, is paid search still as relevant as it used to be?

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The Burning Question: Do Google Ads Work?

The simple answer to the question “Do Google Ads work” is a resounding yes.

Google Ads is a pay-to-play platform, and even if you have a tight budget, you can invest what you can. Sure, more budget is great for a higher volume and scale, but even if you’ve only got $100 a month, you can drive results.

There’s plenty of data that showcases how valuable Google Ads can be, but these are a few of our favorite statistics:

• Google owns 73% of the paid search market share
• 65% of small- to medium-sized businesses use paid search ads
• 75% of users say paid search ads make it easier to find the information they’re looking for
• 63% of Google users have clicked on an ad at some point
• While ROAS varies heavily based on a number of factors, a complex study by Nielsen found that the average ROAS from Google Ads is around 28%

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Why Paid Search Is More Relevant Than Ever Before

Paid search ads— including Google Ads— are more relevant than ever before. And that’s saying something, because it’s been dominating the PPC market for a long time.

There are plenty of reasons why paid search is invaluable for brands, but there are three reasons why it’s particularly crucial to use today.

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1. Paid Search Doesn't Suffer From Lack of Attribution

By now, there’s a good chance you’ve heard about the major attribution concerns on social media ads following the iOS updates.    

The new updates requires users to opt-in to third party data tracking from apps (instead of having them opt-in on default and requiring them to opt-out).

This means that once users click on a Facebook Ad and go to another site or app, the data tracking stops. There’s then a lack of attribution, and you don’t know which clicks turns into actions like adds to cart, booked appointments, or sales.

Paid search does not suffer the same lack of attribution. This means we can easily track what’s happening after users click on an ad. Both our account managers and Google can see this data so you have a solid understanding of which ads are working and why, and we can optimize your campaigns further to get more results.

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2. Paid Search Can Be Extremely Targeted

Paid search isn’t just about creating ads and writing general copy and attaching it to every nearly-relevant keyword to see what sticks and who clicks.

It can be extremely targeted. As long as you understand your buyer personas, it’s easy to quickly and effectively get the right traffic to your site at the right time.

This includes knowing which keywords your target audience uses and what their search intent is. You can also use audience layering in order to increase the likelihood that the right people see your ad when they’re researching buying decisions.

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These features allow for high levels of control, making it easier to create strategic and effective campaigns.

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3. Google Ads Can Use CRM Data For Deep Optimizations

Did you know that Google Ads can sync with your CRM?

You can integrate the two, allowing Google Ads to pull detailed data from your CRM to learn more about your target audience, lifecycle stages, and order values.

Since so much of Google Ads runs off of deep machine learning and automatic optimizations, this is a massive benefit to advertisers and brands everywhere.

This makes it easier to understand which 20% of your customers are delivering 80% of your revenue so that you can target more users like them at the right times and with the right offers. If you want to maximize ROI and ROAS (and who doesn’t?!), this is the way to do it.

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Final Thoughts

Every few years, someone rolls out with a new article complaining that “paid digital advertising isn’t relevant anymore.”

That’s unlikely to ever be true, at least in our lifetime, and it’s certainly not true now.

Paid search ads are increasingly becoming the cornerstone of many brands, including small and large businesses alike. They’re flexible, versatile, and highly effective when you have the right strategies in place.

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